Services

Welcome to Tessmer Law Offices

When your liberty, livelihood, family or assets are on the line, think of Tessmer Law Offices. Our philosophy, 'When losing is not an option' really says it all. We are a small group of highly motivated and skilled lawyers who work with you to get the results you need. Whether the government is trying to take and keep your assets or whether they are trying to put you in jail, we do whatever it takes under our constitution to make sure that doesn't happen. We leave no stone unturned to fight your legal battles. Browse the site to meet the lawyers, hear about some of our battles, and get updates on important legal issues of our time. Or, join the dialogue on Twitter and check out our Facebook page. While no lawyer can guarantee a win in Court a wise person makes sure he has a skilled advocate by his side to ensure the best possible outcome.

Civil Forfeiture Law

This is the newest weapon in the British Columbia government’s arsenal to take your assets. Even if you don’t get charged with a crime, the police may seize your money, your valuables, and even your house, if they can prove that it was probably used for a criminal purpose. The Civil Forfeiture Act gives wide powers to the ‘Director’ of Civil Forfeiture to commence lawsuits against your property to lead to a forfeiture.

In a recent case where the police tried to seize our client’s home, we were able to get the case dropped because the police violated our client’s rights in the process of executing a search warrant for a marihuana grow operation. The law of civil forfeiture is evolving and in order to protect your assets, you need someone knowledgeable in this area.

If you have a legal issue you want a Civil Forfeiture lawyer to help with, ASK NOW!

Criminal Law

Criminal defence is our passion and we defend against charges of all kinds. If you are facing charges for assault, theft, impaired driving, drug-related offences, driving while prohibited, or any other crime, we can help.

Our criminal defence practice has successfully defended our client’s at all court levels in Canada including the British Columbia Provincial and Supreme Courts, the British Columbia Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada.

We are at the forefront of “cutting edge” law and our criminal defence lawyers keep apprised of new developments in both statute and the common law. We are constantly researching new laws and even have our own internal library filled with case precedents and authorities that we will rely on when we defend you. If you have a defence, we will find it and we will get you results.

We also understand that financing can be a concern for many people facing criminal charges. One thing clients often worry about when deciding whether to get a lawyer is the “hidden costs” that other firms may charge. You can put this concern aside when you come to Tessmer Law Offices as our criminal defence lawyers offer “flat-rate billing”. This means that the amount we quote you at the outset is the amount you’ll pay for our services when we resolve your matter. We also offer three highly capable criminal defence lawyers with varying experience; we surely have a lawyer who can suit your financial constraints and satisfy your legal needs.

To find out more information from one of our criminal defence lawyers, ASK NOW

Impaired DUI / Impaired Driving Myths

For those of you wondering about your impaired driving charges or IRPs or DUIs, here are some things that science shows are both true and false about common breathalyzer myths.

Breathalyzer Myths

Food can Fool an Alcohol Breath Tester - False, but a little True for gum

Food before you drink can slow the passage of alcohol into your blood stream but it won’t help you beat a breathalyzer test. A breath alcohol tester does not "smell" alcohol on your breath the way an officer can. Masking the smell of alcohol with breath mints, onions, gum or anything else won’t change the alcohol content of your breath or the reading on a quality alcohol breath tester.

However...chewing gum can bring some residual fumes up from your stomach so although the gum won't affect the readings directly, its presence can cause falsely high readings if the gas comes up (similar to burping).

Coffee Helps Me Sober-up Faster and Lower My BAC - False

Coffee will not change your breath alcohol content (BAC). Only time will reduce your BAC.

Mouthwash & Breathspray will Fool a Breath Tester - True and False

Mouthwash and breath spray may mask the smell of alcohol on your breath, however using these substances just prior to a breath test may actually increase the BAC level you register. Mouthwash and breath sprays frequently contain alcohol and will leave residual alcohol in your mouth and on your breath for up to fifteen minutes after use. You are very likely to register a higher result if you use these products a few minutes prior to being breath tested. It is important to note here that obtaining an accurate alcohol test result requires two things: 1) an accurate instrument and 2) utilization of proper testing procedures. That is why it is universally accepted that an accurate result requires waiting 15 minutes to take the breath sample after the tested subject has put anything into his her mouth.

Nyquil Will Set Off a Breath Detector - True

Nyquil and other similar products do contain alcohol, just like beer, wine, and liquor. As such, they can contribute to or cause inebriation if consumed in sufficient quantities. Alcohol testing devices do not differentiate between types or brands of drinks; they merely provide an accurate indication of BAC.

I suffer from GERD (Gastro-esophageal reflux disease) - True

Burping is always a possible suspect for a false positive reading. GERD causes the individual to burp repeatedly thereby greatly increasing the possibility that the reading was wrong. However...if you want to go down this route with the OSMV, then it's imperative that you can give evidence that you did in fact burp or could feel the gas fumes in your mouth at the time of providing the test.

My Breathalyzer Test was Positive Because I'm a Diabetic - True and False

Quality fuel cell based breath testers such as the Alco-Sensor IV DWF (the old machine that police were using) and the Alco-Sensor FST (the new machine that the police use) are not affected by ketones, a class of chemicals often produced in the body of persons with diabetes. However, cheap immitation roadside devices (for example if you buy an app for your cell phone) use a semiconductor alcohol tester and can react to other substances in the breath besides alcohol resulting in false positives.

Pennies will Absorb Alcohol and Fool a Breathalyzer - False

A penny in your mouth or under your tongue will not change your level of intoxication or fool a quality breathalyzer. Pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, etc. do not absorb or mask alcohol. As a matter of proper testing protocol, officers make sure you have no substances in your mouth before conducting a breath alcohol test. Finding loose change in your mouth is likely to raise suspicions that you have something to hide.

Perfume can Cause an Incorrect Reading - False

Perfume may contain alcohol but this evaporates from the skin and disappears within seconds or minutes. Additionally, since quality breath testers are closed loop, sealed systems where one breathes directly into the mouthpiece the amount of residual alcohol in the environment is basically not a factor as the device is sampling only lung air. This one is highly unlikely.

Cigarette Smoke will cause me to Fail - True and False

Cigarette smoke can reduce the life of a fuel cell in the Alco-Sensor thereby damaging it over time so it is not be to blown directly into until at least 5 minutes have passed to eliminate the smoke. However, this won't have any immediate effect on the breath readings; rather, cigarette smoke becomes relevant if the officer's machine becomes damaged from continued improper use in other cases.

If I Hold a 9 Volt Battery to My Tongue I can Fool the Breathalyzer - False